Free Republic

State Rep. Colin Simpson of Cody announced Monday that he will not run for Congress in 2008. Simpson had said last spring that he planned to run against Rep. Barbara Cubin next year for Wyoming's only seat in the U.S. House of Representatives. Simpson said serving in Washington, D.C., did not fit with his current goals, requiring too much time away from his family. Cubin announced earlier this month that she would not seek an eighth term in Congress, citing the need to spend time with her ailing husband. Simpson's name was on a short list of 10 who were...

The pro-life record of Wyoming's two Republican U.S. senators is being questioned following their strong support for the Susan G. Komen Foundation's "Race for the Cure" in their home state.  Sens. Craig Thomas and Mike Enzi routinely vote on the side of pro-life causes, but their alliance with the Komen Foundation's Wyoming affiliate exists despite the fact that Komen hands part of the money it raises over to local chapters of the pro-abortion Planned Parenthood Federation of America. Planned Parenthood clinics provide breast cancer screening and education, but the organization is the nation's top abortion provider. Both senators' conservative...

Republican John Barrasso, a surgeon and conservative Wyoming legislator, was named as the country's newest U.S. senator Friday to replace the late Craig Thomas. The temporary appointment, announced by Wyoming's governor, is effective immediately, but it won't effect the Senate's party breakdown since Thomas was also a Republican. He died June 4 while being treated for leukemia. Barrasso, 54, will serve in Thomas' place until the beginning of 2009. He said on his application that he also intends to then run in a November 2008 special election to serve out the remainder of Thomas' term, which ends in 2013.

CHEYENNE, Wyo. (AP) - Casper surgeon and state Senator John Barrasso is going to Washington. Governor Freudenthal (FREE'-den-thawl) today (Friday) named Barrasso to replace the late Senator Craig Thomas, who died two weeks ago while fighting leukemia. Barrasso was 1 of 3 candidates nominated by the Wyoming Republican Central Committee after a marathon meeting Tuesday. He and his fellow candidates all embraced what they called "bedrock" conservative values, including low taxes, limited government regulation and private property rights.

CHEYENNE, Wyo. (AP) - Casper surgeon and state Senator John Barrasso is going to Washington. Governor Freudenthal (FREE'-den-thawl) today (Friday) named Barrasso to replace the late Senator Craig Thomas, who died two weeks ago while fighting leukemia. Barrasso was 1 of 3 candidates nominated by the Wyoming Republican Central Committee after a marathon meeting Tuesday. He and his fellow candidates all embraced what they called "bedrock" conservative values, including low taxes, limited government regulation and private property rights. The final GOP vote had Barrasso in second place, one vote behind former state party chairman Tom Sansonetti and several votes ahead...

CASPER — An open application process. A televised debate. Two rounds of speeches. Two more rounds of question-and-answer. All to select three nominees for the U.S. Senate seat that was vacated by the death of the late Craig Thomas. All of it controlled by a single political party. And all of it conducted in the open. Cynthia Lummis, a former state treasurer and one of the three nominees selected Tuesday by the Wyoming Republican Party State Central Committee, called it “a marvelous exercise in the great American republic.” On Wednesday, the GOP will forward three names to Democratic Gov. Dave...

CASPER, WY -- Wyoming Republican Party Chairman Fred Parady reports that as of 5 p.m. June 14 the following have submitted applications for Wyoming’s vacant U.S. Senate seat. The list is unofficial at this point as the Wyoming Republican Party is in the process of verifying each applicant's elegibility. John Barrasso Casper, WY Tom Sansonetti Cheyenne, WY Larry J. French Powell, WY Ron Micheli Ft. Bridger, WY Frank Moore Douglas, WY Bill Paddleford Jackson, WY David R. Edwards Douglas, WY John A. Holtz Laramie, WY Colin M. Simpson Cody, WY Thom Rankin Casper, WY J. Randall Stevenson Wheatland, WY Clark...

The Wyoming Republican Party will know by Thursday who plans to vie for the U.S. Senate seat opened by the death of Craig Thomas. It has scheduled a public meeting June 19 to select the party's three nominees. Fred Parady, the state party chairman, said Monday that the party would take applications until 5 p.m. Thursday and would announce each morning who has applied. "Our goal is simple - to put forward the three very best possible candidates for the office of senator," Parady said. Within hours of Parady's announcement, a handful of Wyoming politicians announced that they intend to...

As Wyoming prepared to mourn the late Sen. Craig Thomas (R.-WY), who died last week at 74, the state's unique succession process was quietly beginning to take effect. Under the state law, when a Senate vacancy occurs, the governor must appoint a sucessor from the same party as the previous holder of the seat. Accordingly, the 71-member Republican state committee will meet on June 15th and submit three names. Democratic Gov. Dave Freudenthal will choose the new senator from the three and a special election will be held in November of 2008 to fill the remainder of the term won...

Lynne Cheney, wife of Vice President Dick Cheney, is being floated in Senate GOP leadership circles as a possible replacement for the last Sen. Craig Thomas (R-Wyo.), who died Monday night. Susan Thomas, the late senator's wife, has also been mentioned by Senate Republicans as a potential choice to take over for her husband, as well as former Justice Department official Tom Sansonetti. One GOP insider said Lynne Cheney had been in Washington "too long" to be acceptable to the Wyoming GOP, despite her long resume, and Susan Thomas would not be interested in serving out her husband's term. Sen....

WASHINGTON - Wyoming Republicans have just 15 days to choose possible replacements for the late Sen. Craig Thomas (news, bio, voting record), a decision that could have an impact on the balance of power in the Senate in 2009. No Democrat has represented the state in the Senate since 1977. But Thomas' immediate successor will set in motion Democratic efforts to stage an upset next year, when voters will elect a permanent replacement for the senator. The vacancy gives Republicans one more seat to defend as they attempt to reclaim their Senate majority. Thomas died Monday night after suffering for...

Sen. Craig Thomas (R-Wyo.), who has battled leukemia in recent months, is in “serious condition” and is with his family at National Naval Medical Center in Bethesda, Md., according to a statement released by his family. “At this difficult time, all we can do is give him as much love and support as possible,” his wife, Susan Thomas, said. “The support and prayers of Wyoming folks have made a tremendous difference to us. It has meant everything to Craig, and I know it helps him today.” Thomas is undergoing a second round of chemotherapy, but his blood cancer has resisted...

CHEYENNE, Wyoming (AP) -- Sen. Craig Thomas, hospitalized since Monday with pneumonia, has been diagnosed with a form of leukemia, his spokesman said Thursday. The Wyoming Republican, who was easily elected to a third term while in the hospital, issued a statement saying he will undergo treatment and plans to return to Congress in January.

Wyo. Dems rally for a victorious November election By Jennifer Frazer rep8@wyomingnews.com Published in the Wyoming Tribune-Eagle CHEYENNE - Wyoming Democrats seem to be an endangered species at times, so it was with a palpable sense of excitement that they gathered for the Wyoming Democratic Convention at the IKON Center Saturday. But there was more than just a feeling of solidarity. There was the scent of opportunity - or blood - in the air. Whatever it was, the 259 delegates and seven alternates were in a jubilant mood, singing democratic songs, cheering their candidates and greeting old friends. "I believe...

Enzi, Thomas mum on anti-lynching bill By Jessica Lowell rep5@wyomingnews.com Published in the Wyoming Tribune-Eagle CHEYENNE - Fred Lebsack isn't very happy with his U.S. senators. The Cheyenne man said it was "pretty backward" that neither Sen. Craig Thomas nor Sen. Mike Enzi, both Republicans, signed on to support the Senate's apology, issued Monday, for that body's failure to take action when anti-lynching legislation first was proposed. "This is waffling at best, weaseling at worst," Lebsack said, pointing out that Wyoming's nickname is the Equality State. The U.S. Senate passed a non-binding resolution that apologizes to victims for the Senate's...

life's work in bronze A bronze calf was unveiled to honor Clifford Hansen By Ilene Olson rep3@wyomingnews.com Published in the Wyoming Tribune-Eagle CHEYENNE - A bronze calf dedicated Thursday to Clifford Hansen, former Wyoming senator and governor, recognizes his contributions to the state and to agriculture. "I think it's very appropriate," Hansen said after the unveiling on the Capitol lawn. Hansen, who served as governor from 1963-67 and as U.S. senator from 1967-78, owned and operated a cattle ranch in Teton County. Prior to his political career, he was a member and president of the University of Wyoming Board of...

The U.N. Convention to Combat Desertification was ratified by the U.S. Senate on October 18, but few Senators yet know that it has been ratified. Senator Craig Thomas (R-WY) introduced a package of 34 treaties, all of which were ratified by a show of hands -- no recorded vote.

Convention lets local Republicans discuss the issues By Becky Orr rep6@wyomingnews.com Published in the Wyoming Tribune-Eagle CHEYENNE - Laramie County Republicans supported platform issues Saturday that ranged from voluntary prayer in schools to keeping the job of county sheriff as an elected position rather than an appointed one. In a room decorated with red, white and blue balloons bearing the Bush-Cheney ticket for 2004, the delegates heard from elected officials, including U.S. Sen. Craig Thomas, R-Wyoming, State Superintendent of Public Instruction Trent Blankenship and state Speaker of the House Fred Parady, R-Rock Springs. Parady discussed state budget issues. "Education is...

Racist views exist in Wyoming, advocates say By Becky Orr rep6@wyomingnews.com Published in the Wyoming Tribune-Eagle CASPER - When Marilu Duncan moved to Wyoming from Mexico nearly 20 years ago, life was suddenly different. "Something happened to me when I crossed the border," Duncan said Wednesday during the state's first cultural diversity summit here. For the first time in her life, she was mistreated because of her ethnic background. A clerk, unable to understand her accent, was rude. "The way I was perceived had nothing to do with the way I perceived myself," Duncan said as she described her culture...